The present invention relates generally to interior trim panels for vehicles and, more particularly, to a reinforced interior trim panel assembly and method of making same for a vehicle.
It is known to provide an interior trim panel assembly for a vehicle to present an aesthetically pleasing appearance in an occupant compartment of the vehicle. The interior trim panel assembly may be a door trim panel assembly having a plurality of separate components with each component having a specific function. The components typically include an interior trim, sound absorber, water barrier, insert, armrest, and map pocket closeout and side impact blocks. The components are assembled together and attached to an interior trim substrate by several different conventional processes including adhesives, heat staking, sonic welding, and fasteners. The interior trim panel assembly is then mounted to a panel such as a inner door panel of a door for the vehicle by suitable means such as fasteners.
Although the above interior trim panel assembly has worked well, it is desirable to reinforce an interior trim panel assembly. It is also desirable to provide a reinforced thermoplastic bead molded interior trim panel assembly. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a reinforced interior trim panel assembly and method of making same for a vehicle.
It is, therefore, one object of the present invention to provide a reinforced interior trim panel assembly for a vehicle.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of reinforcing an interior trim panel assembly made by molding with thermoplastic beads.
To achieve the foregoing objects, the present invention is a reinforced interior trim panel assembly for attachment to structure of a vehicle including a reinforcement and a carrier formed from a plastic material for attachment to the structure of the vehicle and incorporating the reinforcement within the plastic material.
In addition, the present invention is a method of making a reinforced interior trim panel assembly for attachment to structure of a vehicle. The method includes the steps of placing a reinforcement into a cavity of a mold and filling the cavity with a plastic material. The method also includes the steps of introducing steam into the mold to expand the plastic material to form a carrier with the reinforcement disposed within the carrier and bonding the carrier against the reinforcement to form a single reinforced interior trim panel assembly.
One advantage of the present invention is that a reinforced interior trim panel assembly is provided for a vehicle. Another advantage of the present invention is that a method is provided for making a reinforced interior trim panel assembly having improved strength especially with thermoplastic bead molded products. Yet another advantage of the present invention is that the method provides interior trim panel assemblies with higher tensile strength and improved dimensional stability. Still another advantage of the present invention is that the reinforced interior trim panel assembly may incorporate wire meshes for reinforcement, improving the EMI shielding quality of the assembly.